Myanmar national charged with providing false information to MOM
Posted: 30 October 2012 2156 hrs
SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has charged a 28-year-old Myanmar national, Kyaw Swar Win, for furnishing false information to the Controller of Work Passes by submitting a forged academic certificate to obtain a work pass.
On Tuesday, Kyaw pleaded guilty to the charge in the Subordinate Courts, and was jailed four weeks.
MOM said investigations revealed that Kyaw was aware that his employment agency in Myanmar had misled the Ministry of Manpower to believe that he was a degree holder when an online application for an S pass was made for him to work as a supervisor for Leong Guan Food Manufacturer.
Kyaw was also given a copy of the forged certificate by the employment agent in Myanmar, which he submitted to MOM on April 23, 2009.
Kyaw had only received high school education in Myanmar.
For furnishing false information, Kyaw had flouted the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (EFMA). He was arrested and subsequently charged in court.
The current penalty for the offence is a fine of up to S$15,000, a jail term of up to 12 months, or both.
In the first nine months of 2012, MOM had prosecuted 39 offenders for similar offences. Most of these offenders were jailed for up to six weeks by the court.
As part of the amendments passed in Parliament in September, the penalties under the EFMA will be enhanced to increase deterrence by the end of the year.
For example, the maximum fines for submission of forged academic certificates by foreign workers will be up to S$20,000 from the current maximum of S$15,000. Offenders may also be jailed for up to 24 months, up from the current 12 months.
-CNA/ac
